Taylors

[Tonefiend]

Any thoughts on Taylor guitars?

[Nelson F]

My Opinion again Just My Opinion" they feel Great BUTT i don't think they are full sounding"" like a Martin!! Again just my Opinion

[lure555]

Originally posted by Nelson F
My Opinion again Just My Opinion" they feel Great BUTT i don't think they are full sounding"" like a Martin!! Again just my Opinion
Wait til you hear the new re-voiced dread that'll be coming out within the next six months. They are hella-amazing, and the new electronics blow the Fishmans away!

[Mike Hansen]

My experience has been that Taylor makes great playing guitars, Martin makes great sounding guitars.

[Lily]

Originally posted by Nelson F
My Opinion again Just My Opinion" they feel Great BUTT i don't think they are full sounding"" like a Martin!! Again just my Opinion

Nelson, which models of the Taylors have you tried????

The higher end Taylors will KILL you - they sound INCREDIBLE! :cool:

[gazza]

I have an 810ce that is very nice, it sounds good plugged in and great unplugged but it is no Martin imo.I primarily bought it to do plugged in gigs and it does the job perfectly.When I am playing for a smaller group with no need for electronics I use a Martin.

I use to have a Taylor 355 twelve string, Nice guitar.I think Taylor and Guild are making the nicest 12 strings on the market.

[Riscchip]

I've given some thought to buying one of their new nylon string models. I tried a few out last weekend and thought they had an excellent playability / tone ratio. I'd like ot get a decent nylon string cutaway guitar with a spruce top (which I prefer to cedar for use with a pick), and so far these new Taylors have been my favorites.

Anyone played / own one of these & care share some thoughts?

[GuitWidget]

I own a 514 CE. It has a western red cedar top and a cutaway. I think it's fabulous. I don't amplify it, so the on-board blender, while a nice feature, is superfluous - maybe, someday.......

Anyway, it's tone is full and resonant and it projects like a foghorn! When using a pick, unless I'm muting, I have to be careful to play more lightly than I'm use to. It can be downright loud. It's probably better geared for finger playing; with a new set of strings, it's pretty damn pure. Tonally, it's right on target for me. It's mid and bass responses are full and clear with a little rounder and warmer top. I will buy more acoustic guitars, but I can't see myself parting with this one. Nice looking axe, she is, too.

[Gazza]

I played a Taylor that had a western red cedar top once and it sounded awful,maybe it was just that one guitar but it really sucked.The guitar sounded dead or something.I will have to give another western red cedar a try.

[pickdropper]

Taylors generally leave me pretty cold. They do play well, but they just don't sound like a Martin to me.

There is one exception, tho. A buddy of mine has a couple Taylors and one of em is an all Koa Taylor and that thing is just beautiful sounding. His other one does absolutely nothing for me, but the Koa is really quite nice.

[Mr. Z]

I have a Taylor but want an old '70s Martin(can't afford any earlier). I agree w/ the other guys, Taylors sound a bit cold compared to an old Martin or Gibson.
My Taylor's up for sale in the classifieds FWIW.

[Pull For Boost]

I love mine. I have a 414mace. However I'm thinking of upgrading to a 614ce.

[Pull For Boost]

Originally posted by Mike Hansen
My experience has been that Taylor makes great playing guitars, Martin makes great sounding guitars.

Lots of truth in that. I prefer the Taylor because of it's play-ability. I agree unplugged the Martin sounds better. However when it counts I will be plugged in and in a band mix, so I figured the play-abilty factor would be more important to me.

I thought about getting a x12 Taylor. Very small body style but they sounded small. If you want a big unplugged sound from a Taylor try the x15 or x55

[GeetarGoul]

Originally posted by
I played a Taylor that had a western red cedar top once and it sounded awful,maybe it was just that one guitar but it really sucked.The guitar sounded dead or something.I will have to give another western red cedar a try.

Check out a Goodall with the cedar top!!!

[offpiste]

I have Koa 414 that I love. I got it a used a couple of months ago after demo of many new tak's, gibson's, Ovations. I played every guitar in 3 different stores and for the money ($700) the used Taylor was simply the best playing and sounding guitar I played.
The music store I bought it from the owner said a 65 year man dropped it off last week on consignment along with a 79 LP pro.
I immediately bought the LP for $900 (Looks like a custom with p-90's) Super Hot. I took home the LP played it for 2 days but kept thinking of the Taylor. Went back an got the 414.
Now I am the pround owner of 2 nice instruments.
For the money IMO a used older Taylor is hard to beat.

Good luck
Off

[JoeP]

I've had a couple of Martins, and everytime I recorded with them, i had to cut the mids/low mids, to get the guitar to cut through the mix.. I've never had to do that with my Taylor, it just sings,,

Martins are great, Taylors are great, it's all what is the sweetest to your ears, and Martins (to my ears), are TOO full sounding.. so much that they bury some of the tonal qualities..

But, these were from new (only less than 5) year old guitars.... NOT the old Martins... Completely different animals...

JoeP

[Nelson F]

Originally posted by Mike Hansen
My experience has been that Taylor makes great playing guitars, Martin makes great sounding guitars.

Such a true Statement!

[aahzz]

I have a Taylor 510, from either '94 or '95 (can't remember right offhand when I picked it up) that I absolutely adore. Wouldn't trade it for three Martins. That having been said, I've found no other 510's with the tone that mine has. When I bought it, I played everything I could get my hands on, in every music store I could find. Was pretty set on a Martin. Then I picked up this particular 510, and I knew I was done. As with any brand of acoustic, there will always be some where all the elements just come together magically, and the tone flows.....

[DLHelfand]

I have a 614CE and love it. It sounds and plays well. It really is a matter of taste, but I don't like Martins at all. Never did. I do know that anyone that plays my Taylor, wants it. I am also partial to Gibson acoustics, but not Martin

[James Tonguet]

I have an 8 year old 612C , back when they had 2 piece flamed maple backs I love it , it records well and plays like a dream . I have an LR Baggs dual source that compliments it well.

Martin OM's are a favorite too , but I enjoy the sparkle of the Taylor and IMHO they play easier. I have 9 guitars and IF god forbid I was down to 1 it would be the Taylor

[Lily]

The 612CE was the model I wanted. Great guitar! :XRE

Got any photos???

[James Tonguet]

I 'd like to say my Taylor 612C is used for Fingerstyle. I find it is not nearly as pleasing when played with a pick, but the small body is a dream for this application .

I love thier 12 strings too , they are the easiest to play fingerstyle with and the sound is great . As funds allow I plan on getting a W65 , the all claro walnut model.

[cooltone]

I love my Taylor. It's a 415 (Jumbo). I played Martins, Guilds and Gibsons in the same price range and always came back to Taylor.

I believe the reason is that, not being an acoustic player primarily, I found the neck a comfortable transition from my electrics. I was looking for playability first, I guess.

[jignant]

'96 812c concert cutaway before they put electronics in em. I love the guitar but wish it was a little louder. I like the smallness of the body but you obviously lose volume and depth. A Martin vs. Taylor rosewood/spruce dreadnought road test is in order...I have not shopped for guitars in a while!!!

[maidenstrat]

Firstly i love my Taylor its a 814ce which is awesome.
Now i will agree that that all taylors are great to play but no always great sounding un plugged.I too want a good Martin and have played some nice ones but there are so many poor sounding new martins out there, unless you go for the re issues, in fact the duds have out numbered the good ones. After i get my martin there will be more Taylors, a 614ce, a Sambora sig and a twelve string although i`m not sure which model yet.

[johnlg]

I have 3 Martins and 1 Larrivee. I've always snobbed Taylors as being way to bright and thin sounding. I was looking for a guitar to take camping and I played a used Big Baby Taylor at Guitar Center. I loved it. I couldn't put it down. I bought it. I know that it's not a high end Taylor but I really enjoy my Big Baby T.

Never say never. My mind opened after buying the Big Baby; no more Taylor bashing from this guy.

[Leseattlepaul]

Every guitar seems to have their own personality, identical brands,models,ect can play and sound totally different.We can probably all agree on that.I have a prize Tacoma DM18 that I think is one in a million in tone, I use that for my bench mark. The Taylor 914ce is right up next to it, a little softer.Perfect plugged in, and oh yes I love its neck, very nice fret board. 3times the price of the Tacoma." New players out there please don't be fooled by price or brand that does not matter, find what sound great to you." The one Martin I find amazing is 00028 Eric Clapton model perfect for porch playing, I don't Know how they sound plugged in no eq on it. All three have special qualities. I played lots of gibsons too but I guess my two cents is up. Oh yes I might be wrong, but one thing is for sure the Taylor gets played everyday!

[maidenstrat]

James I love the look of that Walnut twelve string but the one I played sounded aweful, I was so dissapointed as it was such a good looking guitar, it`s still at the store and I think it will be there for some time yet.

[John Vasco]

I have a lefty 314. Being left-handed, the choice was more limited. however, the London shop I went into has a rather big left-handed section, separate from the main section of the shop. There, I tried Guilds, Takamines, Ovations, Gibsons and other lesser brands. I kept going back to the 314 for its playability and tone. The Gibson J-160s and J-200s were dead, tonewise. I was actually astonished at just how poorly they sounded, being a Gibson freak when it comes to electrics. The one I wanted was a 514ce, but they wouldn't bring the price down to the same level as a righty 514ce (discrimination still rules, eh!?).
A lefty friend of mine had bought a J-200 for over £2,000. The next time we got together for a jam, he played my Taylor for about 10 minutes solid, then looked at me and said "I should have got a Taylor".
In simple terms, Taylor are up there with the best in terms of build quality, playability and sound. The 314 also introduced me to a brand of strings (no advertising here, note) that I had not used before. Now, I will not use anything else for my acoustics or my Les Pauls.


:lhg (this was supposed to be the left-handed guitar smilie, that can be used on the Les Paul Forum and Mr. Leo's Forum. Why not here? More lefty discrimination - boo hoo hoo!)